Overview
- Gregory Rodrigues won the UFC Sacramento main event by unanimous decision after using heavy leg kicks and scoring two knockdowns that damaged Anthony Hernandez's lead leg.
- Hernandez told media he repeatedly informed referee Herb Dean that Rodrigues was grabbing the inside of his gloves during grappling exchanges and said Dean issued warnings rather than deducting points.
- Rodrigues denied the cheating claim in post-fight interviews, saying he won with legal strikes and that no clear foul was seen by the referee or broadcast viewers.
- The Unified Rules ban using glove material to trap or control an opponent (Foul No. 14), but the rule leaves warnings and point deductions to the referee's discretion, which is the core of the dispute.
- Both fighters received Fight of the Night bonuses reported at $100,000 each, Rodrigues moves up in middleweight contention, Hernandez faces a crossroads after a second straight loss, and officiating scrutiny around Herb Dean has intensified.